Amal Clooney, Professional Heroine, Does Not See Herself as a Celebrity

Amal Clooney, whose trophy husband you may have seen from time to time on screen, sat down with Cynthia McFadden on NBC News this week to talk about her newfound "attention" and her passion for social justice. The exclusive interview aired on NBC Nightly News With Lester Holt on Thursday, illuminating the vital work that Clooney does worldwide and her immaculate complexion. (We have our priorities, but still.)

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Clooney was in town on business, in our nation's capital to convince lawmakers to pay closer attention to the crisis in the Maldives, a jet-set destination that has been thrown into political disarray since the collapse of a democratic government. She is now representing Mohamed Nasheed, who served as elected leader for three years before being ousted and jailed. He has been convicted and given a 13-year sentence.

"Democracy is dead in the Maldives," Clooney told Cynthia McFadden. "Literally, if there were an election now there would be no one to run against the president. Every opposition leader is either behind bars or being pursued by the government through the courts." Clooney made her case to senators and congressional officials, pushing them to impose sanctions on the island nation to free her client.

When the situation is this precarious, Clooney's husband and his latest movie are more or less irrelevant. And yet she said that she hopes she can use her newfound fame to spotlight the plight of victims around the world. And while she doesn't consider herself a real celebrity a la Angelina Jolie, she admires how some stars have put their popularity to good use. "I think it's wonderful celebrities would choose to spend their time or energy or, you know, the spotlight that they have to raise awareness about these causes. I don't really see myself in the same way because I'm still doing the same job that I used to do before. So if there's more attention paid for whatever reason to that, then I think that...then I think that's good. I think there is a certain responsibility that comes with that [attention]," she told McFadden. "You know, I think I'm exercising it in an appropriate manner by continuing to do this kind of work and engaging with the media on issues that I think are important."

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She has already won some allies. Senator John McCain promised her he'd "go to work on it." Several other senators and representatives met with her to hear her out. "We'll keep pushing until we get him released, which is what the U.N. has said should be done," Clooney said. "We're not going to give up."